Microstock Royalty Free or Rights Managed

How to know which licensing model is right for your campaign

With all of the different image licensing models available today, it can be a bit confusing to know which one is right for your campaign. The biggest question to consider when choosing a licensing model, is how unique you need the image to be to your project.

Microstock may seem enticing, with it’s extremely low price point and huge variety to choose from. However; the imagery won’t be the slightest bit unique to your campaign. Microstock is very commonly used, so it can show up anywhere: from an ad for your local dry cleaner to a car wash flyer or even be used by your direct competitor. Although the Royalty-Free licensing model also can’t ensure the same image won’t be used by your direct competitor, the production value is generally of a higher quality. The higher quality RF imagery justifies a slightly steeper price point than microstock, and the mass usage will be greatly reduced. If you need to ensure that the image selected for your campaign is not currently being used by a direct competitor or won’t show up on a flyer stuck under your windshield, Rights- Managed licensing would be the best option. Although the price point is the highest of all of the licensing models, the usage is controlled and the quality will be top notch. The image will become more associated specifically with your campaign, rather than commonly appearing all over town. When selecting your imagery, be sure to think about how you want your campaign to be perceived and then choose the image licensing model appropriate for your project’s needs.
Microstock, Royalty-Free or Rights Managed Imagery article by Alisa Steck is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.